In a World Cup 2026 warm-up match, the French national team played at the Stade de la Beaujoire on Thursday against Ivory Coast and lost 1-2. Five Paris Saint-Germain players, all French, were in the squad: Lucas Hernandez, Warren Zaïre-Emery, Désiré Doué, Bradley Barcola, and Ousmane Dembélé. Here are the French players’ ratings from the press.
Le Parisien:
Mbappé (4)
Thuram (3) – Cherki (6.5) – Olise (5)
Rabiot (4) – Tchouaméni (5)
T. Hernandez (4) – Upamecano (6) – Konaté (3) – Koundé (4)
Maignan (5)
Lacroix (5), Digne (3.5), Kanté (4), Akliouche (4), and Mateta (4.5).
L’Equipe:
Mbappé (4)
Thuram (4) – Cherki (7) – Olise (6)
Rabiot (5) – Tchouaméni (4)
T. Hernandez (5) – Upamecano (6) – Konaté (4) – Koundé (5)
Maignan (4)
Lacroix (4), Digne (4), Kanté (5), Akliouche (5), and Mateta (4).
Unfortunately, these ratings seem quite accurate for a rather lackluster performance from Les Bleus. There’s no need to overreact; it was only a friendly with some squad rotation. But it’s also clear that there’s still work to be done for France to go far in this World Cup. Even though they were facing a strong team, one to be taken very seriously in this tournament, this shouldn’t be forgotten.
